Mario Van Peebles doesn’t get behind – or in front – of the camera that much these days (his last directorial effort was the Wesley Snipes DTV film, Hard Luck, two years ago). But we’re glad to report that the man is back back back, with a brand-new film, Kerosene Cowboys, and a cast to fill their flaming boots.

Shane West (who went AWOL from movies after The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen back in 2003), Rachael Leigh Cook and Cam Gigandet (the bad guy in the forthcoming Twilight) have all signed on to star in the action thriller, which sounds to us a bit like a Top Gun for the Noughties.

Focusing on the hard-living, harder-fighting pilots of an elite US Navy attack squadron, Kerosene Cowboys will follow Gigandet’s hotshot pilot as he does… something. We’re not quite sure what, to be honest. But it probably involves flying a plane and being hot-headed.

West will play his former best friend-turned-nemesis (oooh!), while Cook will play Gigandet’s love interest.

First-time writer Adam Prince adapted the novel by Randy Arrington for the big screen, while Van Peebles is planning to shoot in Nevada and St. Petersburg in Russia, complete with the use of actual MiGs. Given the way things are between Russia and America right now, we’re sure a jingoistic action flick in which those Russkies get their asses handed to them real good will be instrumental in bringing the two countries closer together.

Ordinarily, we'd be a little cynical about the chances of this even making it to the big screen, but if Twilight hits big and Gigandet gets a big career bump on the back of that, then you never know...